What You Can Do To Help Cure Alzheimer's Disease

A new service provides clinical trial information and a free, confidential matching service for people with Alzheimer's, caregivers and healthy volunteers.

(NAPSI)-There's encouraging news for the 5.3 million Americans living with
Alzheimer's disease. While there are currently no treatments available to
slow or stop the brain cell deterioration that occurs with the disease, more
than 100 clinical studies in Alzheimer's and dementia are currently taking
place, and dozens more experimental compounds are poised to move from the
laboratory to clinical testing.

Families affected by Alzheimer's need better diagnostics and treatment
now, but the development and testing of these new treatments are being
delayed by a lack of volunteers in Alzheimer's clinical studies.

"Alzheimer's disease is reaching epidemic proportions with
devastating impact on families and the potential to wreck Medicare, Medicaid
and the health care system," said William Thies, Ph.D., chief medical
and scientific officer at the Alzheimer's Association. "The immediate
need for advances in diagnosis, treatment and prevention has led to an
unprecedented need for clinical study participants."

"By volunteering for clinical studies, people with Alzheimer's and
their caregivers can play a more active role in their own treatment while
also contributing to scientific discovery and benefiting future
generations," said Dr. Thies. "It is public service in the best
possible sense."

According to Marilyn Albert, Ph.D., professor of neurology at Johns
Hopkins and director of its Division of Cognitive Neuroscience, "By
referring our current patients to trials, we offer access to potential cutting-edge
treatments while unlocking the door to potentially more widely available
treatments for people with Alzheimer's in the future."

The service contains a comprehensive, constantly updated database of
Alzheimer's, mild cognitive impairment and other dementia trials taking place
across the U.S.

Alzheimer's Association TrialMatch can be accessed at www.alz.org/TrialMatch or by calling
(800) 272-3900 toll-free.